How We Have Been Growing Happy The Last Few Months

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Knowledge Universe. However all opinions are 100% my own.

I love to go from being a mess to getting work done. I’m not only talking in the literal sense, but the physical sense too. A few months back I was inspired by Knowledge Universe and made a commitment to GROW HAPPY for me and my family. I wrote about it here on my blog.

I teamed up with Knowledge Universe which is a great company that cares for 0ver 130,000 kids everday and have now teamed up with Michelle Obama’s Partnership for a healthier America (PHA) to help battle child obesity. The goal was to help families make little simple changes that would lead to a healthier lifestyle down the road. I took this challenge myself and these are the results.

Results On Goals:

FOOD: We have been able to maintain the less sugar rule in my house. We are down to one amazing dessert a week. I have cut all soda from the household and reduced the amount of sugar I would normally put in aguas or lemonade down considerably. I make big bowls of fresh-fruit salad (which usually get sprinkled with fresh lime juice and tajin.) I have also been freezing bananas then putting them into my vitamix for a quick banana sorbet and topping it with shredded coconut and chopped pecans. This works really perfect and always hits the spot. My son has still not fallen in love with salads but I surely have. It seems I am eating salad way more than anything else these days. I go to the farmers market usually on Sunday morning and buy anything that looks vibrant and fresh. Then I come home and roast a batch of veggies to drop in a salad anytime I’m craving one. This has really helped me, plus roasted veggies simply taste better.

BODY: My son is an absolute athlete in the making. It might be in extreme sports because he seems to love all things on the adventurous side. He rides his scooter down hills, jumps off little ramps and is the first one to leap into the pool off a diving board. Yes, I have a dare devil on my hands. I’m not complaining, I just have to keep him well protected because of how extraordinarily active he lives. Me and my fiance have really stepped it up in the movement department. We have been taking hour long walk/runs at least 2 to 3 times a week and I have been practicing pilates twice a week with my best friend. I am starting to see a change in my body and have lost 5 pounds. Yippeee! Plus I love the accomplished feeling I get after a great workout.

MIND: Mental health is such a huge issue for me. A few years ago my son was diagnosed as “provisional autistic.” He was not talking at the time and had to spend up to 12 hours in therapy every week. We were unsure of what the outcome would be for him and tried our best to get him the help he needed. Since then he is talking non-stop and sounds like a young adult half the time, is going into a main stream school (starting this fall for kindergarten), has a quick and wicked sense of humor, and is reading at a first grade level. He has exceeded our wildest dreams. Even though we’re thrilled with all his astonishing achievements, I will not let his mental health slip my grips. I am constantly working on building his knowledge base and teaching him new things. We read almost every night and then I make him repeat back the story to ensure reading comprehension. We play bingo or loteria, build puzzles and of course are always playing his iPad together. I am very proud of my little guy and know all the hard work it took to get to this place.